Felix Auger Aliassime is over in Melbourne

Félix Auger-Aliassime is over in Melbourne

MELBOURNE, Australia | Since the start of the Australian fortnight, Félix Auger-Aliassime has tried to endure as best he can, despite a level of play below that presented by the Quebecer in the last few weeks of 2022.

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It worked for three rounds. The fourth was finally too much. The Czech Jiri Lehecka, 71st in the world, showed the “FAA” on Sunday with 4: 6, 6: 3, 7: 6 (2) and 7: 6 (3) the exit door at the Australian internationals.

Félix Auger-Aliassime is over in Melbourne

“It’s been a complicated week. I’m keeping my hunger a little, lamented the sixth favorite, who reached the quarter-finals in Australia last year. I didn’t feel like I was expressing my game as well as I could and I just have to accept that. »

The giant butcher

While Félix struggled to find his touch in Melbourne’s biggest stadiums, Lehecka has taken on the guise of a hulking killer over the past week.

The only 21-year-old Czech beat the 21st-seeded Croatian Borna Coric in the first round. He then brought down Britain’s Cameron Norrie, 11th, in the third lap before pinning Felix to his chase board.

However, the meeting had started badly for Lehecka. Auger-Aliassime seemed to have regained his touch. The Quebecer’s level of play had improved a little from game to game: this start to the game indicated that he had finally found his way.

Félix Auger-Aliassime is over in Melbourne

Félix quickly took control of the opener, breaking Lehecka 1-1 after an unforced error from the Czech. The two players then continued their duties on the field of a Margaret Court stadium, where several Canadian flags were flying.

But the damage was done for Lehecka, who tried desperately to aim for the lines with little success.

Two bad tiebreaks

Similar to the preliminary round against Argentinian Francisco Cerundolo, however, “FAA” lost some of its shine in the following set. Burdened by unprovoked errors (45 in total during the game) and even seven double faults, Auger-Aliassime conceded his first break of the game at the end of the set.

The next two were closer, punctuated by some good substitutions but also by Félix’s power in service, especially in the most critical moments. The catch is that the 22-year-old never found the key in return.

Félix Auger-Aliassime is over in Melbourne

And that he claims to have played two bad tiebreaks. “I was struggling to gain points on his serve, so I had less confidence at the break,” admitted Auger-Aliassime.

Not at his best

After around three hours and ten minutes of play, as the lights came on at Margaret Court announcing the impending start of the evening session, the curtain fell on Felix’s seat in Melbourne.

The seventh in the world was able to recover to 4: 3 in the tie-break of the fourth set. But he then conceded three match points to his rival, who realized the first.

Félix Auger-Aliassime is over in Melbourne

“Overall, he played better than me,” emphasized the Quebecer. I am proud of my performance but my level is not where I would like it to be. »

“I’ve had some good moments here and there in the tournament, except lately I haven’t been as consistent as I was when I was playing well. I’ll try to see what happened, but that’s all I can do at the moment,” he said.